1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for treating abnormal β-amyloid mediated diseases with a pharmaceutical composition, wherein a compound contained in the pharmaceutical composition is served as a chemical chaperone and enhances heat shock protein HSPB1 activity to facilitate the β-amyloid folding; therefore, the purposes of inhibiting β-amyloid aggregation, decreasing reactive oxygen species level in cells, and promoting neurite outgrowth can be achieved.
2. Description of Related Art
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most prevalent form of dementia in elderly patients causing neurodegeneration. The progressive cognitive decline and memory loss are usually observed in AD patients, and health expenditures and costs of care are high and expensive for AD patients. Significant neurological symptoms are not observed in the early stage of AD, and can be revealed in the middle and late stages thereof. The most observed symptoms are extrapyramidal symptoms, including increased muscle tone, and increased deep tendon reflex or myoclonus. Sometimes, epilepsy may also occur.
Although the drugs used nowadays cannot completely cure AD, some drugs are proved having efficacy of improving cognitive impairment. Currently, two kinds of drugs have been proved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, one is cholinesterase inhibitors including rivastigmine, donepezil and galantamine, and the other one is N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist such as memantine. Except for the administration of drugs for improving cognitive impairment, other suitable drugs also have to be administered to AD patients with other symptoms derived from AD such as depression and sleeplessness.
The worldwide populations with AD are gradually increased. Therefore, it is desirable to provide a method or a pharmaceutical composition for treating β-amyloid mediated diseases, which can be used to treat neurodegenerative diseases such as AD to further delay disease progression and improve patients' quality of life.